Eco earth vs repti soil

[VikingRaptor90]

What do you prefer to use? Eco earth or Repti soil

 

[Matts inverts]

I prefer reptisoil but I want to use more coco fiber to test.

 

[Charliemum]

I am from the UK and keen true spiders I use an arid earth mix from the spider shop my spiders seem to like it and it holds burrows not that my spiders do but it's nice to know they can. I did try potting soild but when it dried it came away from the edges and left a gap. I wasn't keen on that but thumbs up so far for the arid earth mix .

 

[ConstantSorrow]

Eco Earth. I gave Repti Soil a shot, wound up mixing it with a bunch of Eco Earth and it was still all chunky and rough and dried rather hard.
Maybe I'll use the leftover to mulch up the flowerbed.

 

[viper69]

Coco fiber - smooth fiber ground

 

[cold blood]

Just go to home depot and get a bag of cheap top soil.

Topsoil

• cold blood
• Dec 29, 2017
• 2

 

[Smotzer]

I agree with Cold Blood, or like I use, go to homedepot and get a big bale of peat moss for $10-12 I think and it will last you for eons in just rehousing, and it doubles as organic component to soil mixes. It does become hydrophobic when super dry but there are ways around that. This is what In pretty much solely use.

 

[joossa]

I love Reptisoil. Has worked really well for me.

 

[Robert Marley]

Just go to home depot and get a bag of cheap top soil.

Topsoil

• cold blood
• Dec 29, 2017
• 2

I would worry with that. If there’s pesticide contamination in a bag of top soil, the garden store would give me the bird for complaining. However with a substrate advertised towards us, they would have to listen to the complaint or suffer. Sure it’s more expensive but it gives me piece of mind. Maybe I’m a bit on the paranoid side.

 

[cold blood]

I would worry with that. If there’s pesticide contamination in a bag of top soil, the garden store would give me the bird for complaining. However with a substrate advertised towards us, they would have to listen to the complaint or suffer. Sure it’s more expensive but it gives me piece of mind. Maybe I’m a bit on the paranoid side.

I have been using it for over a decade...no issues.

Its not just a bit more expensive, its like 50 times more expensive.

 

[Sterls]

My primary sub at the moment is probably reptisoil, but I've started to mix different subs together to get what I feel like - exact proportions/ingredients vary.
Pros/cons of the 3 I've used the the most are below. I'll also mix a little sand or vermiculite in sometimes to better the drainage / ability to soak up water efficiently.

Reptisoil
+ good aesthetics
+ retains moisture well
- can be difficult to rehydrate if you let it completely dry out
- expensive

Eco-Earth / Coco Fiber
- looks too uniform for my taste; the others often have sticks and stuff that break up the appearance
- tends to mold eventually if you keep it moist
+ cheaper than reptisoil (I think? If you buy compressed bricks at least)
- kind of a pain/annoying to expand the bricks
+ absorbs water efficiently enough
- loses water to evaporation quickly

Topsoil
+ good aesthetics
+ dirt cheap
- can sometimes harden into a tough solid mass if moistened (I believe this is mostly regional, there's a lot of clay in the soils around me. definitely not experienced by all who use it)
- not 100% safe; I usually test each bag by throwing some in a deli cup with feeders for a day or two to make sure it's safe as a precaution
+ typically it's safe though, never actually had an issue (I'm just paranoid)

 

[goliathusdavid]

I use eco-earth as the bricks are quite affordable, and I like the texture\uniformity. I'll also mix it with tons of organic matter for isopods and millipedes, which I notice decreases its evaporating tendencies.

 

[cold blood]

can have a tendency to harden into a tough solid mass if moistened (I believe this is mostly regional, there's a lot of clay in the soils around me)

This happens when soil is packed down like one would do with other subs...due to its density, soil doesnt need to be packed down. I havent ever seen this occur just from moistened dirt.

not 100% safe

I dont agree

 

[Sterls]

This happens when soil is packed down like one would do with other subs...due to its density, soil doesnt need to be packed down. I havent ever seen this occur just from moistened dirt.

That's what I believed at first. The first time I used it I packed it down before reading otherwise, but it didn't take me long to figure out that mistake and correct it.

I've still had this happen when not packing it down though. Not trying to say it's a guarantee - your experience with it is far more extensive than mine, and demonstrates as much. Still think it's useful to mention, as it has been my first-hand experience with the substrate. Possible that all the enclosures I experienced this with came from the same bag and it was just a fluke.

I dont agree

I mean, it's just a fact that a product not intended for the pet trade is more likely to contain a dangerous contaminant than one marketed and sold for exotic pets. It's dirt cheap because they don't add anything to it, but at the same time I doubt they thoroughly inspect every batch. The source for it certainly varies from region to region, so I think there's a non-zero chance of environmental contamination.

Like I said, I've never had an issue, and you've obviously never had an issue in 10+ years. But I have heard from at least one experienced keeper that did - and lost spiders as a result. It might not be likely, but it's not impossible. Certainly not a reason to avoid it, it's one of the best substrates around, and the absolute best bang-for-your-buck.

 

[VikingRaptor90]

I use eco earth for my T's and zoo meds creature soil for my scorpion

 

[Matts inverts]

I dont agree

I find tons of shredded plastics and tons of bugs and other not animal safe things in all organic soil. I have only found a piece of plastic once in my eco earth and I later found it was the bucket I was using to soak it broke. I know I should go through it to check if it’s safe but it’s easier and cheaper to get coco fiber bricks.

 

[Sterls]

I find tons of shredded plastics and tons of bugs and other not animal safe things in all organic soil. I have only found a piece of plastic once in my eco earth and I later found it was the bucket I was using to soak it broke. I know I should go through it to check if it’s safe but it’s easier and cheaper to get coco fiber bricks.

You shouldn't be buying "organic" soil anyway, and I've never seen the $2 bags of topsoil we're talking about listed as such. Organic doesn't mean all-natural and safe, it's just a buzzword to sell more products. Most, if not all, so-called organic soils contain an "organic fertilizer" - this is usually chicken poop, earthworm castings, and/or bat guano. None of which you want in your substrate.

I have found plastic scraps in topsoil as well though, but those are easy enough to remove.

 

[cold blood]

I find tons of shredded plastics and tons of bugs and other not animal safe things in all organic soil. I have only found a piece of plastic once in my eco earth and I later found it was the bucket I was using to soak it broke. I know I should go through it to check if it’s safe but it’s easier and cheaper to get coco fiber bricks.

Well, rocks and even plastic wont hurt a t....but are easy to pick out

The fact that its labeled for animal use doesnt make it anything better, it just vastly increases price.

Never buy any topsoil with an "organic" label. ALL soil is inherently organic...when you see this on a bag of dirt, its not in reference to the soil, but rather its additives....organic additives can mean any number of things one doesnt want in an enclosure, like compost or manure.

The stuff you want isnt even marketed for plants [if you read the bag i posted a pic of], its marketed for filling holes and leveling ground....thus no need for ANY additives. Ya just gotta pick out the rocks.

 

[Matts inverts]

I bought a bag that said it was safe on an tarantula site. I know to just pick the stuff out but it isn’t good when you have to pick stuff out of the soil because it’s not safe. I’d rather stick to something I know doesn’t have poison and shredded plastic in it.

 

[Sterls]

I bought a bag that said it was safe on an tarantula site.

Tarantula websites - notorious for their accuracy! This stuff is best bought from your local hardware store. The chance of it being poisoned with something is probably less than 1% given the amount of us that use it with no issues. I understand not wanting to pick out bits of plastic - I just don't think it's that troublesome, personally. To each their own.